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Paul Feyerabend was born.
Paul Feyerabend was born in 1924 in Vienna where he attended primary school and high school. Source: http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Feyerabend -
Paul is drafted into the German Arbeitsdienst.
When he graduated from high school in April 1942, he was drafted into the German Arbeitsdienst. Source:http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Feyerabend -
Military time.
From December 1943 on, he served as an officer on the northern part of the Eastern Front, was decorated with an Iron cross, and attained the rank of lieutenant. Feyerabend was hit by three bullets while directing traffic. As a consequence of this, he needed to walk with a stick for the rest of his life and frequently experienced severe pains. Source:http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Feyerabend Picture: https://iainbking.com/2015/07/04/the-nazi-who-almost-destroyed-science/ -
"A Raving Positivist"
Returned to Vienna to study history and sociology at the University. Soon transferred to physics. First article, on the concept of illustration in modern physics, published. Feyerabend “a raving positivist” at the time. Source: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ -
London School of Economics.
Received doctorate in philosophy for his thesis on “basic statements”. Applied for a British Council scholarship to study under Wittgenstein at Cambridge. But Wittgenstein died before Feyerabend arrived in England, so Feyerabend chose Popper as his supervisor instead. Source:https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ -
Feyerabend chooses Popper
Wittgenstein died before Feyerabend moved to England. Feyerabend then chose Popper as his supervisor instead, and went to study at the London School of Economics in 1952. Source:http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Feyerabend -
Declined to become Popper's research assistant.
Feyerabend returned to Vienna. Popper applied for an extension to his scholarship, but Feyerabend decided to remain in Vienna instead. Translated Popper's The Open Society and its Enemies into German. Declined the offer to become Popper's research assistant. Agassi took the post. Feyerabend became research assistant to Arthur Pap in Vienna. Source:https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ -
Popper continued and a return to Vienna.
In his autobiography, Feyerabend explains that during this time, he was influenced by Popper: "I had fallen for [Popper's ideas]." After that, Feyerabend returned to Vienna and was involved in various projects. He was paid to do a number of projects: he translated Karl Popper's Open Society and its Enemies into German, he did a report on the development of the humanities in Austria, and he wrote several articles for an encyclopedia
Source:http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Feyerabend -
Paper on Quantum Theory
Gave a paper on the quantum theory of measurement to the Colston Research Symposium at the University of Bristol. Source:http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Feyerabend -
University of California at Berkley
He had moved to University of California at Berkeley in Southern California in 1958 and became a US citizen. Source:http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Feyerabend -
Argues on theoretical entities
As a result of earlier discussions with Herbert Feigl, Feyerabend published “Das Problem der Existenz theoretischer Entitäten”, in which he argued that there is no special “problem” of theoretical entities, and that all entities are hypothetical. Gave two lectures to Oberlin College, Ohio, in which he embroidered on Popper's views about the pre-Socratic thinkers. -
Incommensurability
“Explanation, Reduction, and Empiricism” appeared. Criticized existing empiricist accounts of explanation and theoretical reduction (Hempel, Nagel), and introduced the concept of incommensurability, based on the “contextual theory of meaning” which Feyerabend claimed to find in Wittgenstein's Investigations. Source:https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ -
Professorships
Following (visiting) professorships (or their equivalent) at London, Berlin, and Yale universities, he taught at the University of Auckland, New Zealand, in 1972 and 1974, always returning to California. Source:http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Feyerabend -
Against Method
Appearance of Feyerabend's first book, Against Method, setting out “epistemological anarchism”, whose main thesis was that there is no such thing as the scientific method. Great scientists are methodological opportunists who use any moves that come to hand, even if they thereby violate canons of empiricist methodology. Source:https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ -
Publishes "Science as an Art"
Publishes “Science as an Art”, in which he defends an explicitly relativistic account of the history of science according to which there is change, but no “progress”. Also continues his campaign to rehabilitate Ernst Mach. Source:https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ -
Leaves Berkeley
After alternating between posts at ETH Zurich and Berkeley through the 1980s, but left Berkeley for good in October of 1989, first to Italy, then finally to Zurich Source:http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Paul_Feyerabend -
Hospitalized
Third edition of Against Method published. Feyerabend developed an inoperable brain tumor, and was hospitalized. Source:https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ -
Feyerabend Dies
Feyerabend died in the Genolier clinic (Genolier, Canton of Vaud, Switzerland), February 11th. Several major memorial symposia and colloquia on his work took place over the next two years. Source: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feyerabend/ -
